Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion

Here is a thread to discuss books you’re considering or suggesting for Task 23: Read a “howdunit” or “whydunit” mystery.

The Secret History or And Then There Were None

this blog post from the LAPL has some howdunits listed: https://www.lapl.org/collections-reso...

I like this genre but would definitely want to read more contemporary (and also less outdated in that sense) ones so keeping an eye on the recommendations here. I did love Patricia Highsmith's Deep Water.

Keigo Higashino's Detective Galileo series will work for this and task 8

I enjoy mystery, but I don't read that much of it, and I'm excited for a task that helps me expand that. I'm hoping to find something that works for this task that's already on my tbr.

Vani wrote: "Keigo Higashino's Detective Galileo series will work for this and task 8"

I liked his books, and would recommend them too.

I'm really enjoying Station Eternity and will probably go for book 2 Chaos Terminal for the challenge

I'm either going to read Death on the Nile or The Man Who Died Twice as I own them both and they are both on my TBR.

The New York Public Library has created a page for this challenge. Their picks for this prompt are:

Under Lock & Skeleton Key
The Perfect Nanny
The House in the Pines
Marion Lane and the Midnight Murder

what about "Wrong place Wrong time" by Gillian McAllister?

What about this book: Wrong Place Wrong Time??

I love murder mysteries but I think I'm a little unclear about what makes something a whydunit or howdunit versus a whodunit! I guess I'll try to pick something from a list then, whether one of the library ones shared here or when Book Riot makes one.

Oh wait, that LA Public Library post says that locked room mysteries are basically all howdunits? I have a whole TBR shelf of locked room mysteries, but... I combine them with a trope I call "trapped together". I think the "trapped together" ones are whodunits ("which of us is killing the others?") but the real locked room ones ("wow, there's a body in this room. How did someone possibly kill them?") are howdunits. I'm getting closer to understanding this idea, but I still can't think of any whydunits. But anyway, here's the ones from my list that I think are howdunits:
- Malice(also mentioned in the article)
- Murder in the Crooked House
- The Maid
- The Mystery of the Yellow Room

Thank you Jessica! That has helped me find one I want to read!

What about The Housemaid's Secret?

Does anyone know if The Last Mrs. Parrish counts as a whydunit?

Some definitions for these terms when I searched them -
Whydunit: A type of detective story in which the focus is not on who committed the crime, but what were their motives for committing it.
Howdunit: A type of detective story in which the focus is not on who committed the crime, but how they have done so.

I just finished Ruth Ware’s Zero Days and plan to count that as a whydoneit. Others may not agree.

I'm hoping Stuart Turton's "last murder at the end of the world" (released in May 2024 in the US, March 2024 in the UK) will fulfill this prompt! His previous books certainly would.

Does anyone have any recommendations for an SFF mystery that fits this category?

Elizabeth wrote: "Does anyone have any recommendations for an SFF mystery that fits this category?"

I think Six Wakes by Mur Lafferty might fit this one. It's a murder mystery set in space that involves clones. Not only is it a who-dunnit, but you have to unravel exactly how and why it was done. I really enjoyed it!

I just read Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger, which I'm using for this task. Its predominant genre is fantasy, but it has a very prominent mystery in which we know who did it from the very beginning but not how or why. Loved it.

I'm really confused about what counts for this prompt.

Would Flavia deLuce novels count? There's always a strong element of howdunit and sometimes whydunit because the murders are often committed in creative ways, but the who also needs to be answered as well. But the who is oftentimes less interesting than the how or why.

I don't read a lot of mysteries in general, but I've been slowly working through that series, and so far nothing else I've seen recommended for this prompt has interested me.

Hm, I picked a book based on its premise, but now that I've finished reading it, I'm not sure if it counts. The investigators have a suspect who supposedly has an alibi, so they spend the first half of the book trying to figure out how he could have done it. But after they know how, there is a plot twist and both cases they thought he was behind turn out to have nothing to do with him.

That's why I don't like plot related prompts! :D

I read a classic Agatha Christie “And Then There Were None” for this task. The howdunit at the end is brilliant!

There's a compilation called Howdunit, but I'm not sure if that would work, since it's not all one mystery

Jessica wrote: "I love murder mysteries but I think I'm a little unclear about what makes something a whydunit or howdunit versus a whodunit! I guess I'll try to pick something from a list then, whether one of the..."

I read Malice and it was definitely a howdunit and/or whydunit. I liked the book but I don't really like the idea of a 'howdunit" because I kept expecting it not to be the person they said it was in the beginning.

I've chosen Have His Carcase (carcass for non-Brits) by Dorothy Sayers.

would Even Though I Knew the End of Just Like Home qualify?

or, not of

I read Until Proven Guilty by J. A. Jance.

Louise Penny's Ganache series is quite good

I decided to read a classic for this and went with The Mystery of the Yellow Room by Gaston Leroux.
I didn't really like it so it was a miss for me.
But if you want to read one of the firsts "locked room" tales, this is it!

For a contemporary read try SAVAGE RIDGE by Morgan Greene. I read an ARC, will be released March 21. You know the whole time who did it you just don’t know why.

I've been slowly working through Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot mysteries, and somehow I've never read The Mysterious Affair at Styles which kicks it all off and fits this prompt.

I read The Driver's Seat. Muriel Spark actually uses the term "whydunnit" in the novella. It is an interesting, quick read.

I read The Consequences of Fear. 5 stars. I enjoy this series.

Was hoping to read most of the Women's Prize and Carol Shields Prize Longlists for this year. Some titles from those award nominees that might fit this category:

I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai

Ordinary Human Failings by Megan Nolan

The Maiden by Kate Foster

twisting/ bending the prompt a little, does anyone think Project Hail Mary might work as a locked room (spaceship) howdunit/whydunit scifi mystery?
I haven't read it yet, but the premise seems like it might work for the prompt

I feel like this book fits: Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson.

Sarah wrote: "I'm really confused about what counts for this prompt.

Would Flavia deLuce novels count? There's always a strong element of howdunit and sometimes whydunit because the murders are often committed..."

Personally I'd count any mystery that focuses on the how or why, as well as the who, I think you'd be hard pressed to find many mysteries that don't have a whodunit element (I can think of a few movies but that's not much help)

The Book Assassin wrote: "I like this genre but would definitely want to read more contemporary (and also less outdated in that sense) ones so keeping an eye on the recommendations here. I did love Patricia Highsmith's Deep..."

For a contemporary one, I think One of Us Is Lying by Karen M. McManus would fit - the how is uncovered pretty quickly, but the why takes a lot longer to be revealed

I'm going for Towards Zero by Agatha Christie - I already have Mysterious Affair at Styles down for a prompt for a different reading challenge, and I love And Then There Were None, but I read it fairly frequently so want to try a different one!

Towards Zero might not fit perfectly, but it's a slightly different take on her normal mysteries, and I think the how and why does get explored through the book

Would the Janice Hallett novels count? There's always an element of confusion over who or what has done something in the story and everything comes together at the end.

I have already read The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels earlier this year and I was planning on reading her new one, The Examiner, later after publication.

I'm reading And then There Were None to double up with my Agatha Christie challenge

Elizabeth wrote: "Does anyone have any recommendations for an SFF mystery that fits this category?"

I was also thinking Six Wakes or Station Eternity by Mur Lafferty would be SFF mysteries that would fit. But A Master of Djinn by P. Djeli Clark would also probably fit, actually.

Marnie by Winston Graham

Tamara wrote: "twisting/ bending the prompt a little, does anyone think Project Hail Mary might work as a locked room (spaceship) howdunit/whydunit scifi mystery?
I haven't read it yet, but the premise seems lik..."

I, for one, am LOVING this idea. Definite "how-am-I-gonna-do-it" energy throughout.

Personally, I'm reading too many darn mysteries for other challenges this year. I simply cannot force myself to read another one...